CASUALTY REVIEW

SOMERSET HEADINGROAD SAFETY PARTNERSHIP CASUALTY REVIEW 26-28 IMPROVING ROAD SAFETY WORKING TOGETHER TO REDUCE CASUALTIES

HEADING HEADING CONTENTS 3 1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY........................................ 4 2. INTRODUCTION............................................. 5 3. COLLISION AND CASUALTY TRENDS 26-28................ 6 4. KILLED AND SERIOUSLY INJURED CASUALTY REDUCTION...... 8 4.1 KSI Casualty Reduction........................................ 8 4.2 KSI by User Type............................................. 9 5. CHILD CASUALTY REDUCTION.............................. 1 5.1 Killed and Seriously Injured (KSI) Child Casualties.................... 1 5.2 Total Child Casualties......................................... 11 5.3 Child Casualties as Percentage of Total Somerset Casualties............ 12 5.4 Child Casualties by Age....................................... 13 5.5 Child Casualties by User Type................................... 14 6. SLIGHT CASUALTIES......................................... 15 6.1 Slight Casualties - Targets and Yearly Figures....................... 15 6.2 Slight Casualties by User Type.................................. 16 7. 16-24 YEAR OLD KSI CASUALTY REDUCTIONS................ 17 7.1 Yearly Figures............................................... 17 7.2 16-24 Year Olds by Severity.................................... 18 7.3 16-24 Year Old Casualties by User Type........................... 19 8. RURAL AND URBAN......................................... 21 8.1 Rural/Urban by Severity....................................... 21 8.2 Rural/Urban by User Type..................................... 22 9. ALL CASUALTIES............................................ 23 9.1 All Casualties by Speed Limit................................... 23 9.2 All Casualties by Road Class................................... 24 9.3 All Casualties by Age Group................................... 25 9.4 All Casualties by District....................................... 26

4 5 1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2. INTRODUCTION This Casualty Review consists of accident data covering the period 26 to 28, during which time a total of 5,152 collisions occurred with a total of 7,256 casualties. In 28 there were 1,56 accidents on Somerset roads, resulting in 2,228 casualties. Of these, 29 were fatal, 245 serious and 1954 were slight injuries. The KSI (killed or seriously injured) casualty figure for 28 was 18 casualties below the target figure for that year. The number of fatalities as a result of road traffic accidents in Somerset in 28 was 26% below the number of fatalities in 27, and the lowest since records have been kept. The number of killed or seriously injured (KSI) child casualties in 28 decreased by 71% compared with 27. There were no child fatalities as a result of accidents on Somerset roads in 27 or 28. In 28, child casualties represented 9% of all casualties in Somerset, compared with 7% in 27. The number of children injured as car passengers rose by 2% in 28. 25% less child pedal cyclists were injured in 28 compared with 27. In 28 there was a decrease of 224 (1%) in the number of slight injuries on Somerset roads. The total number of slight casualties in 28 was 236 casualties below the target for that year. Most injuries in Somerset in 28 resulted from accidents that occurred on roads with speed limits of 6mph and 3mph. 51% of casualties in 28 were the result of accidents on A class roads. In 28 injuries to 16-24 year olds represented 28% of the total casualties in Somerset. The number of injuries to 16-24 year olds decreased by 12% in 28 compared with 27. In 28, fatalities in the 16-24 year age group represented 28% of all fatalities in Somerset. Somerset Road Safety Partnership was formed in 26 to bring together the extensive experience and expertise from a number of organisations to drive down casualty rates, create safer communities and improve the quality of life for all residents and visitors to Somerset. The partners include Somerset County Council, Devon & Somerset Fire & Rescue Service, NHS Trusts, Highways Agency, Avon and Somerset Constabulary and Safecam (Safety Camera Partnership). It is a key objective of the Partnership to reduce casualty rates in line with agreed targets. After a review of the Government targets, the Local Transport Plan 26-211 identified the following targets for Somerset: 1. a 35 per cent reduction by 21 in the number of people killed and seriously injured (KSI) on the county s roads compared to the 1994-98 baseline 2. a 5 per cent reduction by 21 in child KSI casualties 3. the maintenance of slight casualty figures at the 21-24 baseline average The acquisition and analysis of road casualty data is at the core of the Partnership s operations, highlighting at risk groups of road users, locations with high collision rates and monitoring the effectiveness of casualty reduction campaigns. All data contained within this document was correct at the time of publication. This report provides an analysis of the casualty statistics for the period 26 to 28, with particular reference to the target groups, and shows progress towards the key objectives set by the Partnership and in the Local Transport Plans.

6 7 3. COLLISION AND CASUALTY TRENDS 26-28 3.1 COLLISIONS 3.2 CASUALTIES FROM 27 TO 28 FATAL 36 37 28-24 SERIOUS 236 219 212-3 SLIGHT 1565 1499 132-12 TOTAL 1837 1755 156-11 FROM 27 TO 28 FATAL 37 39 29-26 SERIOUS 288 262 245-6 SLIGHT 2224 2178 1954-1 TOTAL 2549 2479 2228-1 FIGURE 2: ALL CASUALTIES IN SOMERSET 26-28 FIGURE 1: ALL COLLISIONS IN SOMERSET 26-28 19 26 255 185 25 18 245 175 24 17 235 165 23 16 225 155 222 26 27 28 During the three year period 26 to 28, the total number of collisions on Somerset roads fell by 4.5% from 26 to 27 and by 11% from 27 to 28. Fatal collisions decreased by 24% in 28 compared with 27. In 28 the total number of casualties was 2,228 which was a decrease of 1% from the 27 figure of 2,479 casualties. The fatal casualty figure for 28 was 26% below that for 27. The 29 fatal casualties in 28 represented a fall of 44% from the average of 52.2 fatalities in the 1994-98 baseline period. Serious casualties in 28 also show a decrease of 6% from the previous year.

8 9 4. KILLED AND SERIOUSLY INJURED CASUALTY REDUCTION It is the responsibility of the Highways Authority to reduce casualties on all Trunk roads in the country. In Somerset, the M5, A33 and A36 are Trunk roads and together accounted for 8.4% of the KSI casualties occurring within the county boundaries in 28 and which are included in Somerset statistics. 4.1 KSI CASUALTY REDUCTION KSI CASUALTIES 25 29 21 ACTUAL 344 325 31 274 YEARLY TARGET 345 336 314 292 27 247 FIGURE 3: KSI CASUALTY REDUCTION SHOWING ACTUAL FIGURES AND TARGETS 4 4.2 KSI BY USER TYPE FATAL KSI FATAL KSI FATAL KSI PEDESTRIANS 3 38 6 47 2 33 PEDAL CYCLES 2 21 1 16 1 18 POWERED 2 WHEELERS 9 88 1 72 12 7 CARS / TAXIS 22 16 18 153 14 138 GOODS VEHICLES OTHER MOTOR VEHICLES 1 2 5 12 1 7 1 5 3 OTHER NON- MOTOR VEHICLES 1 1 3 TOTAL 37 325 39 31 29 274 35 3 FIGURE 4: KSI CASUALTIES BY USER TYPE 2 25 15 2 1 15 5 1 5 Cars / Taxis Pedal Cycles Other Non Motor Vehicles Powered Two Wheelers Goods Vehicles 25 29 21 Pedestrians Other Motor Vehicles Actual casualties Yearly target In 28 there were 2 (2%) more Powered Two Wheeler fatalities than in 27, but the number of serious casualties fell by 4 in 28 compared with 27. In 27, Pedestrian KSI casualties increased by 24% compared with 26, but in 28 this figure decreased by 3%. KSI casualties in 28 were 9% lower than in 27 and 16% lower than in 26. In 28 the number of KSI casualties was 18 casualties (or 7%) below the target for that year. The trend for KSI casualty reduction suggests Somerset will achieve the 21 target as long as reduction continues at the present rate. The number of KSI casualties involving cars and taxis continues to decrease with a reduction of 4% from 26 to 27 and a reduction of 1% from 27 to 28. Over the 3 year period 26-28, the average number of KSI casualties Involving goods vehicles was 9 per year. In 27 the actual number of KSI casualties in this category was 4 below average, in 28 it was 3 casualties above average.

1 11 5. CHILD CASUALTY REDUCTION In order to meet the target of 5% reduction, the number of children killed and seriously injured on Somerset s roads will have to come down from the baseline average of 34 to 17 or fewer by the year 21.The low numbers of casualties in this category means that some fluctuation is inevitable. 5.1 KILLED AND SERIOUSLY INJURED (KSI) CHILD CASUALTIES FROM 27 TO 28 FATAL 1 5.2 TOTAL CHILD CASUALTIES FROM 27 TO 28 KSI 2 28 8-71 SLIGHT 22 154 193 25 TOTAL 222 182 21 1 SERIOUS 19 28 8-71 TOTAL KSI 2 28 8-71 FIGURE 6: ALL CHILD CASUALTIES IN SOMERSET 26-28 FIGURE 5: FATAL AND SERIOUS (KSI) INJURIES TO CHILDREN (-15 YEARS) 3 25 2 15 25 2 1 22 154 193 5 15 1 2 28 8 5 Slight casualties KSI In 28 there were 8 Child KSI casualties compared with 28 in 27, a decrease of 71%. There were no fatal casualties included in either of these figures. In 27, Child KSI casualties represented 15% of the total child casualties for Somerset. In 28 the percentage of child casualties that were KSI was 4%. Total Child casualties increased by 1% from 182 in 27 to 21 in 28. There was an increase of 25% in the Child slight casualty category.

12 13 5.3 CHILD CASUALTIES AS PERCENTAGE OF TOTAL SOMERSET CASUALTIES 5.4 CHILD CASUALTIES BY AGE 5.3 CHILD CASUALTIES AS PERCENTAGE OF TOTAL SOMERSET CASUALTIES CHILD TOTAL SOMERSET TOTAL CHILD CASUALTIES AS % OF SOMERSET TOTALS 222 182 21 2549 2479 2226 9 7 9-3 years 21 1 17 4-7 years 37 39 42 8-11 years 69 53 67 12-15 years 95 8 75 TOTAL 222 182 21 FIGURE 7: CHILD CASUALTIES AS A PERCENTAGE OF ALL CASUALTIES IN SOMERSET 1 FIGURE 8: CHILD CASUALTIES DIVIDED INTO AGE GROUPS 1 8 8 6 87% 91% 93% 91% 6 4 4 2 13% 9% 1994-98 BASELINE 7% 9% 2 Slight casualties KSI -3 years 4-7 years 8-11 years 12-15 years In 27 Child casualties made up 7% of the Somerset total, in 28 this increased to 9%.

14 15 5.5 CHILD CASUALTIES BY USER TYPE 6. SLIGHT CASUALTIES 6.1 SLIGHT CASUALTIES - TARGETS AND YEARLY FIGURES PEDESTRIANS 62 5 49 PEDAL CYCLISTS 49 32 24 21-4 BASELINE ACTUAL 219 2224 2178 1954 YEARLY TARGET 219 219 219 219 CARS & TAXIS 99 93 112 OTHER USERS 12 7 16 TOTAL 222 182 21 FIGURE 1: SLIGHT CASUALTIES SHOWING ACTUAL FIGURES AND TARGETS 225 22 FIGURE 9: ALL CHILD CASUALTIES DIVIDED INTO INDIVIDUAL USER TYPES 12 215 21 1 25 8 2 6 195 4 19 2 185 18 Pedestrians Pedal Cycles Cars / Taxis Other Users Actual casualties Yearly target From 27 to 28, the number of children injured as passengers in cars and taxis rose by 2% from 93 in 27 to 112 in 28. Child pedal cyclist injuries fell by 25% in 28 compared with 27. In 28 the figure for slight casualties was 11% (236 casualties) below the target for the year (2,19 casualties).

16 17 6.2 SLIGHT CASUALTIES BY USER TYPE FROM 27 TO 28 PEDESTRIANS 14 134 125-7 7. 16-24 YEAR OLD KSI CASUALTY REDUCTIONS PEDAL CYCLISTS POWERED 2 WHEELERS 137 122 95-22 185 18 144-2 CARS & TAXIS 1612 1621 1466-1 GOODS VEHICLES OTHER MOTOR VEHICLES 65 59 73 24 79 56 49-13 OTHER NON- MOTOR VEHICLES 6 6 2-67 A local target has been adopted to reduce the number of casualties in this age group by 5 per cent (to less than 49 casualties) by the year 21. 7.1 YEARLY FIGURES An interim milestone target of less than 69 killed or seriously injured 16-24 year olds on roads maintained by Somerset by 25 was also identified. TOTAL 2224 2178 1954-1 FIGURE 11: SLIGHT CASUALTIES DIVIDED INTO INDIVIDUAL USER TYPE 18 CASUALTIES 92 9 71 16 14 FIGURE 12: FATAL OR SERIOUS 16-24 YEAR OLD CASUALTIES 1 12 9 1 8 8 7 6 6 4 5 2 4 3 Pedestrians Pedal Cycles Powered Two Wheelers Cars & Taxis Goods Vehicles 2 Other Motor Vehicles Other Non-Motor Vehicles 1 In the period 26-28, the number of pedestrian slight casualties fell by 4% from 26 to 27 and by 7% from 27 to 28. Pedal cyclists slight casualties fell by 22% in 28 compared with 27. In 27 there were 18 slight casualties in the Powered Two Wheeler category. This decreased by 2% in 28. There were 14 more goods vehicles slight casualties in 28 than in 27. 28 saw a reduction of 1% in the slight casualties who were car or taxi drivers or passengers compared with 27.

18 19 7.3 16-24 YEAR OLD CASUALTIES BY USER TYPE 7.2 16-24 YEAR OLD CASUALTIES BY SEVERITY 7.3 16-24 YEAR OLD CASUALTIES BY USER TYPE FROM 27 TO 28 FROM 27 TO 28 FATAL 8 11 8-27 PEDESTRIANS 31 39 27-31 SERIOUS 84 79 63-2 TOTAL KSI 92 9 71-21 SLIGHT 647 616 551-11 TOTAL 739 76 622-12 16-24 AS % OF SOMERSET TOTAL 29 28 28 PEDAL CYCLISTS POWERED 2 WHEELERS CARS & TAXIS OTHER USERS GRAND TOTAL 29 17 23 35 122 9 89-1 533 538 466-13 24 22 17-23 739 76 622-12 FIGURE 13: ALL 16-24 YEAR OLD CASUALTIES 26-28 8 7 FIGURE 14: 16-24 YEAR OLD CASUALTIES BY USER TYPE 6 14 5 12 4 1 3 8 2 6 1 4 2 In 28 there were 27% fewer fatalities in this age group compared with 27, and 2% reduction in the number of serious casualties. Slight casualties in this age group also fell by 11% in 28 compared with 27. Pedestrians Pedal Cycles Powered Two Wheelers

2 21 FIGURE 15: 16-24 YEAR OLD CASUALTIES WHO WERE CAR/TAXI DRIVERS OR PASSENGERS 56 8. RURAL AND URBAN 54 52 For the purpose of this report, urban and rural are Rural: Roads with speed limits over 4mph. 5 defined as follows: Urban: Roads with speed limits of 4mph 48 or lower. 46 8.1 RURAL/URBAN BY SEVERITY 44 42 RURAL URBAN RURAL URBAN RURAL URBAN KSI 183 142 175 126 16 114 SLIGHT 111 1114 1113 165 147 97 The only category in the 16-24 year age group that saw an increase in casualties in 28 was pedal cyclists which rose by 35%, from 17 to 23 casualties. Pedestrian casualties in this age group fell by 31% in 28 compared with 27. In 26 the number of 16-24 year olds injured as Powered Two Wheeler riders or passengers was 122, this fell by 27% to 89 in 28. TOTAL 1293 1256 1288 1191 127 121 In 28, 58% of all KSI casualties occurred on rural roads, 42% on urban roads, compared with 52% rural and 48% urban in 27.

22 23 8.2 RURAL/URBAN BY USER TYPE 9. ALL CASUALTIES RURAL PEDESTRIANS 21 23 13 PEDAL CYCLISTS 26 17 22 POWERED 2 WHEELERS 11 111 88 CARS & TAXIS 15 172 989 GOODS VEHICLES 51 43 7 OTHER USERS 44 22 25 TOTAL 1293 1288 127 9.1 ALL CASUALTIES BY SPEED LIMIT SPEED 26 % OF TOTAL 27 % OF TOTAL 28 % OF TOTAL FROM 27 TO 28 2 54 2 44 2 42 2-5 3 998 39 946 38 83 37-12 4 24 8 21 8 149 7-26 5 125 5 147 6 141 6-4 URBAN 6 995 39 934 38 911 41-2 7 173 7 27 8 155 7-25 TOTAL 2549 1 2479 1 2228 1-1 PEDESTRIANS 157 158 145 PEDAL CYCLISTS 132 121 91 POWERED 2 WHEELERS 172 141 126 CARS & TAXIS 722 72 613 GOODS VEHICLES 24 21 15 OTHER USERS 49 48 29 TOTAL 1256 1191 119 FIGURE 16: SPEED LIMITS IN WHICH CASUALTIES OCCURRED 1 8 6 4 2 In 28 13 pedestrians were injured on rural roads compared with 145 on urban roads. On rural roads this was a reduction of 1 casualties and on urban roads a reduction of 13 casualties when compared with the figures in 27. Injuries to car/taxi drivers and passengers on rural roads decreased by 8% compared with 27 and decreased by 13% on urban roads. In 28 injuries to Powered Two Wheeler riders and passengers represented 7% of all injuries on rural roads and 12% of all injuries on urban roads. 2mph 3mph 4mph 5mph 6mph 7mph Consistently with the years 26 and 27, in 28 most casualties occurred within the 3 and 6mph speed limits. In 28 there was a reduction of 17% in the number of casualties in the 3mph speed limit compared with the 26 figure, and a reduction of 12% compared with the 27 figure. During the three year period 26-28, roads with a 5mph speed limit saw an increase of 18% from 26 to 27, but this fell by 4% from 27 to 28. In 28, casualties on roads with a 3mph speed limit represented 37% of all casualties in Somerset. Casualties on roads with a 6mph speed limit represented 41% of the total. In 28 62% of all Somerset fatalities occurred on roads with a speed limit of 6mph. This percentage was consistent with the results in 26 (57%) and 27 (59%).

24 25 9.2 ALL CASUALTIES BY ROAD CLASS 9.3 ALL CASUALTIES BY AGE GROUP ROAD CLASS FROM 27 TO 28 Motorways 121 5% 167 7% 15 5% -37 A Roads 124 49% 1265 51% 1146 51% -9 B Roads 329 13% 269 11% 237 11% -12 CHILD (-15) YOUTH (16-24) ADULT (25-29) 222 182 21 739 76 622 1226 125 142 Unclassified 859 34% 778 31% 74 33% -5 TOTAL 2549 1% 2479 1% 2228 1% -1 FIGURE 17: ALL CASUALTIES DIVIDED INTO ROAD CLASSES OAP (6+) 351 37 274 UNKNOWN 11 79 89 TOTAL 2549 2479 2228 14 12 1 8 FIGURE 19: ALL CASUALTIES (BY YEAR) DIVIDED INTO AGE GROUPS 3 6 25 11 351 79 37 89 4 2 274 2 15 1226 125 142 Motorway A Roads B Roads Unclassified 1 26 27 28 5 739 76 622 FIGURE 18: PERCENTAGE OF CASUALTIES ON INDIVIDUAL ROAD CLASSES SHOWING AVERAGE FOR PERIOD 26-28 Unclassified 32.7% 5.7 % Motorway 5.3% B Roads 222 182 21 Unknown OAP (6+) Adult (25-59) Youth (16-24) Child (-15) 11.7% A Roads Over the 3 year period 26 to 28, an average of 5% of casualties in Somerset occurred on A class roads and an average of 37% on unclassified roads.

26 27 FIGURE 2: ALL SOMERSET CASUALTIES DIVIDED INTO AGE GROUPS 14 9.4 ALL CASUALTIES BY DISTRICT 12 KSI SLIGHT TOTAL KSI SLIGHT TOTAL KSI SLIGHT TOTAL MENDIP 76 457 533 6 415 475 57 48 465 1 SEDGEMOOR 62 499 561 66 514 58 52 389 441 8 6 4 TAUNTON DEANE WEST SOMERSET SOUTH SOMERSET 61 454 515 52 439 491 51 48 459 19 173 192 36 151 187 21 144 165 17 641 748 87 659 746 93 65 698 2 TOTAL 325 2224 2549 31 2178 2479 274 1954 2228 Child (-15) Youth (16-24) Adult (25-59) OAP (6+) Unknown 26 27 28 DISTRICT TOTAL AS PERCENTAGE OF SOMERSET TOTAL On average, over the three years 26 to 28, the casualties in Somerset are broken down into: Child casualties 8% Youth casualties 28% Adult casualties 48% OAP casualties 13% Unknown age 3% In 28 the number of casualties in the under 15 years age group increased by 1% and unknown age casualties increased by 13%, but in all other age groups there were reductions in the number of casualties: Youths decreased by 12%, Adults decreased by 14% and OAPs decreased by 13%. AVERAGE MENDIP 21% 19% 21% 2% SEDGEMOOR 22% 23% 2% 22% TAUNTON DEANE WEST SOMERSET SOUTH SOMERSET 2% 2% 21% 2% 8% 8% 7% 7% 29% 3% 31% 3% TOTAL 1% 1% 1% FIGURE 21: PERCENTAGE OF CASUALTIES IN EACH SOMERSET DISTRICT, AVERAGE OF PERIOD 26-28 South Somerset West Somerset 31% 7% 2% 2% 22% Mendip Sedgemoor Taunton Deane

8881 HEADING This document is also available in Braille, large print, on tape and on disc and we can translate it into different languages. We can provide a member of staff to discuss the detail. Images supplied by kind permission of Somerset County Council, Safecam and Somerset Road Safety Partnership.